Research papers must not exceed 20 manuscript pages including Tables and Figures.

Short communications must not exceed 8 manuscript pages, must have an abstract, but may not contain the usual major headings of full papers. Generally, short communications are intended for fast publication of ongoing research for immediate attention to the readers with the understanding that it is foundation of a full-scale research article.

Technical notes do not contain enough material for a full-scale research article, but scientifically important information for the readership. The maximum number of technical notes per journal issue is limited to a maximum of two.

The Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Board will solicit invited reviews. Manuscripts must have an abstract and must not exceed 40 pages.

Only original, unpublished manuscripts not under consideration for publication elsewhere should be submitted. Articles must be technically sound and written in English. Spelling should conform to The Concise Oxford Dictionary. Authors must prepare manuscripts according to the journal’s standards and instructions in order to facilitate prompt review and processing of papers.

Preparation of Manuscripts

Organize the research paper logically and clearly as follows:

Title page – contains specific title and author’s name and affiliation.

Abstract – Provides summary of the study in not more than 300 words, on a page by itself.

Introduction – includes the problem addressed, current level of knowledge, the aim of the study, and the hypothesis tested.

Materials and Methods – must give all information to allow replication of the study.

Results – must give concise summary of data.

Discussion – explains the results and places the study in a larger context of aquatic sciences and literature, and gives the scientific contribution of the study.

Acknowledgement – credits contributors of expertise and funds.

References – must substantially include the peer-reviewed primary literature. Authors are encouraged to include digital object identifiers (doi) of the references cited, when they are available.

Tables, Figure captions and Figures.

Type the manuscript on white bond paper (A4 or 21 cm x 29.7 cm) one side only with 2.5 cm margins all around. Double-space the manuscript throughout, including references, Tables and Figure legends. Use font size of 11 or 12 points.

Leave a triple space before and after the headings. Use capital and lower letters, never all capitals. Avoid footnotes, addenda or appendices as much as possible.

Give the Latin name of the species at first mention in the manuscript. Subsequent references may use the common name. Italicize Latin names.

Place a zero before the decimal in numbers less than 1. Give dates in the form of 10 January 1998. Spell out numbers less than 10 unless they stand beside standard units of measure. Do not spell out numbers larger than 10 unless they are used at the start of a sentence.

Use metric units or the International System of Units (e.g., metre, gram, second, litre, mole, joule, etc.). Common units such as day, hectare, watts, horsepower, ºC and ppt are acceptable. Use abbreviations of units only beside numerals e.g., 5 m; otherwise spell out units. Use superscripts and subscripts instead of the bar (/) for compound units (for example 10 g m-2 instead of g/m2).

In designing Tables and Figures, consider the journal’s printed page size (12 cm x 20 cm) and any reduction needed. Large tables should be avoided. If many data are to be presented, an attempt should be made to divide them over two or more tables. Each table should be typewritten on a separate page of the manuscript. Tables and figures should never be included in the text. They should be on separate pages after the references section of the main text. Vertical lines should not be used to separate columns. Leave some extra space between the columns instead. Number Tables and Figures consecutively, one per page. Figures must be neat line drawings in black Indian ink. Use a laser printer for computer-generated graphics. Good quality, glossy black and white photographs may also be submitted. Lettering on Figures must be of a size readable after reduction (up to 60%). Figure captions must be submitted on a separate page.

Cite references in the text as Authors (year). Cite three or more authors as First Author et al. (year) and references still in press as Author (in press). If a reference is unpublished, state Author (unpublished) or Author (pers. comm.), but try to avoid such citations. Arrange references in series by year.

In the references, arrange papers alphabetically by (first) author’s family name as follows:

(Journal article)*Jennings, S. & N.V.C. Polunin 1996. Effect of fishing effort and catch rate upon the structure and biomass of Fijian reef fish communities. Journal of Applied Ecology 33: 400-412. *Journal title should be given in full.

Number all pages consecutively, including Tables and Figures. Ensure that all copies of the manuscript are legible and clean.

Submission

Submit at first instance three good copies of the manuscript including Tables and Figures. After the review, submit two printed copies of the revision, original of Figures and a soft copy. The computer file must be in Microsoft Word.

The Editor-in-Chief may return any unreviewed manuscript that falls outside the journal’s policy or scope. All other manuscripts will be peer-reviewed by at least two referees.

Proofs

Page proofs will be sent to the first author unless otherwise stated on the title page of the manuscript. Proofs must be corrected within two days. Alterations in proofs other than corrections of printer’s errors may be charged to authors.

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).

The submission file is in Microsoft Word or RTF document file format.

Where available, DOIs for the references have been provided.

The text is double-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses and DOI); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed at the end and approximate positions of figures and tables are indicated within the text at the appropriate points.

The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.

If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

The copyright covers the exclusive right to distribute the article, including reprints, portable document format (pdf) files or any other reproduction of similar nature. No part of the article may be reproduced without permission in writing from the copyright holder.

Privacy Statement

The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.

Publication Fees

No page charges are levied and authors will receive a PDF copy of the published paper.

Sri Lanka Association for Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (SLAFAR) is a non-profit oriented voluntary organization formed by scientists, academics, technologists, developers, and entrepreneurs to address issues related to the utilization, management, and governance of fisheries and aquatic resources and associated ecosystems in Sri Lanka.